24/7 Ward/Kovalev 2 premieres Friday, June 2 on HBO

In advance of the highly anticipated light heavyweight championship rematch between world-class prizefighters Andre Ward and Sergey Kovalev, HBO Sports will air “24/7 Ward/Kovalev 2,” an exhilarating 30-minute special examining the upcoming encounter. The intriguing pay-per-view event featuring the two pound-for-pound aces takes place at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.

The “24/7 Ward/Kovalev 2” special will premiere Friday, June 2 at 11:30 p.m. (ET/PT). The special will look back at their first fight and will preview the hotly anticipated rematch between two accomplished and tenacious ring warriors who first met last November under the red-hot Las Vegas spotlight. Ward, who has not lost a fight since his teen-age years, scored a razor-thin decision over Kovalev and collected all the title belts that the Russian knockout specialist had accumulated. The special will provide all-new content including portraits of both fighters’ path to this impactful showdown. Each has set up training camp on the west coast; Ward in his hometown of Oakland, CA and Kovalev farther south in both Big Bear and Oxnard, CA.

The 30-minute special narrated by Liev Schreiber and produced by HBO’s Emmy-Award-winning “24/7” production team will also be available on HBO On Demand®, HBO GO®, HBO NOW and affiliate portals as well as at www.hbo.com/boxing and various other new media platforms that distribute the show.

Sky Sports to broadcast Ward v Kovalev II

Sky Sports will show the highly-anticipated rematch between Andre Ward and Sergey Kovalev on 17 June at the iconic Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

After Ward’s contentious points-decision victory the bill has been labelled ‘No Excuses’.

A range of support programming will be made available to Sky Sports customers ahead of the bout including Ringside and Toe to Toe.

Adam Smith, head of Sky Sports Boxing, said: “This is one of the most intriguing rematches we’ve had for years. The first one was close and caused plenty of debate, and the second could well do just the same.

“Should Kovalev have got it, especially after that second-round knockdown, or did Ward’s superior skills deserve the decision? Either way both will be out to prove they are the best light-heavyweight in the world, again.”

The fight will be shown in the early hours of the morning in the UK on 18 June, with the channel likely to be Sky Sports 1.